In the off-season when the weather in Orlando isn’t good enough for riding, wakeboarders can be pretty hard pressed to fight off the extreme boredom that is guaranteed to set in. Today was one of those days. It’s early November, so all the contests, demos, and events are done, but it’s still too early for boat show season this winter. The clouds, rain and wind hung over central Florida all day, which meant a lot of guys were sitting around with nothing to do. Over the years wakeboarders have developed several hobbies outside of riding that quickly blow up amongst the Orlando-based industry, only to fizzle out within 12-18 months. These things include, but are not limited to: Halo, making videos, bowling, Call of Duty, shooting pool, crotch rockets, RC helicopters, and gardening. Over the years I have participated in all of these things with various wakeboarders during some solid Orlando downtime. Today, however, I was introduced to the newest leisure activity for the pro wakeboarder. Frolf (a.k.a. Disc Golf, a.k.a. Frisbee Golf).

I got a text message from Mark Rossiter saying he and Shane Bonifay we’re going to hit the frolf links this afternoon and that I should come join them. Being the graduate of CU Boulder (read: hippieville) that I am, I grabbed my frolf discs from years past and met up with the roomies from the ‘hood. Frolf, as you have probably already surmised, is a game of golf played with frisbees, but it is much more than one part golf and one part frisbee. It is really more like one part golf, four parts frisbee, three parts tailgating atmosphere, and 32 parts hippie. Just like golf, you try to throw your frisbee into “hole” (a chain metal basket a few feet off the ground) in as few shots as possible. You even have different types of discs for different shots: distance drivers, mid-range drivers, multi-purpose utility, putters, etc. Unlike golf, you are encouraged to harass your opponent during his backswing, swear as much as Tiger, dress in whatever attire you please, and generally just have a good, un-stuffy time. Plus, frolf discs are a lot cheaper than golf clubs, and most frolf courses are free to the public.

The three of us had a good time fighting off our boredom with a solid round of frolf. Rossiter thoroughly kicked Shane’s and my butts, but really he just got some lucky rolls. Word on the street is guys like Ruck, Harf, Watson and others have been frolfing a bunch this year, as well, so it’s definitely on the up-and-up in the industry. Hopefully it stays cool long enough for me to get good and beat some of these guys, ’cause Lord knows that didn’t work out to well with Halo, making videos, Call of Duty, shooting pool, or crotch rockets.

2 Responses to “Let’s Frolf”

I just picked up a couple of sweet backyard mini disc golf sets from target for $5 each. It has six discs and one basket. You can come by my place for practice anytime GC. You also have a Disc golf shop about 1 mile from your place.